THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (18)

PLOT: The Swedish language version of this was already a hit but director David Fincher felt there was room for one for audiences who don’t like the distraction of subtitles.

The chilly Swedish setting remains the same. however, he has peopled it with English-speaking actors with just a few token Swedes, like Skarsgard.

Crusading journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Craig) is tasked by wealthy Henrik Vanger (Plummer) to investigate the decades old disappearance of his great niece. He is aided by Lisbeth Salander, a young punk hacker with a photographic memory and street fighting skills honed by a lifetime of abuse. Together they uncover some deeply unpleasant skeletons in the Vanger family closet.

In the original, Noomi Rapace set the bar as the androgynous anti-heroine. However, Rooney Mara proves a worthy successor. Her Lisbeth is a fragile-looking yet feral creature, her cropped short fringe and bleached-out eyebrows adding to her otherworldly look.

There is a role reversal for Bond star Craig, as it is Lisbeth who is cracking heads and cracking the case, while he relies on his people skills to ferret out the truth. In spite of Lisbeth’s reliance on technology, this has an old-fashioned feel, like Fincher’s 70s-set Zodiac, as the pair delve into photo albums and dusty business ledgers looking for answers.

GOOD POINTS: Moody and absorbing, this is modern noir shot in a bleak midwinter light.

BAD POINTS: It’s long and the ending seems protracted. There are some graphic rape scenes and the opening credits are at odds with the tone of the rest of it.

SHOULD I SEE IT? Yes, particularly if you’ve not seen the first, and even if you have.